THE UK's Defence Secretary has walked into oncoming traffic to escape questions about why the Government continues to share information gathered from spy plane flights over Gaza with the Israeli military.
Declassified UK questioned John Healey about flights leaving the Cyprus base RAF Akrotiri to monitor the Gaza Strip after leaving a cabinet meeting in Downing Street on Monday.
The minister dodged a lorry as he attempted to avoid the reporter while heading to the Ministry of Defence offices.
When first asked about the RAF’s flights, Healey responded with “good morning” and nothing else.
Editor Phil Miller then pressed: "How can you justify continuing to send these planes over Gaza and sharing intelligence with Israel, when your own government has just sanctioned two far-right ministers?
"One of them is the national security minister, the other has duties in the defence ministry – why are you still sharing intelligence with Israel at this stage of the genocide?".
Healey then responded: “I’ve made entirely clear to parliament the nature of those flights; the restrictive nature of the intelligence linked to finding and helping free hostages. And I’ve got nothing more to add.”
Miller asked: "Isn't it time you did a proper sit-down interview with a journalist about this though, Sir, because you've not really had any independent scrutiny on these flights?"
Healey remains silent, before saying: "I think you'd be hard-pressed to come up with another cabinet member who has done more sit-down interviews with the media in the last two or three weeks than me as defence secretary.
"Because we face very difficult times, changing world, increasing threats."
His answer trails off as he enters his offices.
It comes after The National reported on how the UK Government sent a Shadow R1 spy plane – coded RFR7144 – from the Cyprus base RAF Akrotiri to monitor Gaza just hours after after ending trade talks with Israel and describing its government as “extremists”.
The UK Government then confirmed that it will share information gathered from spy plane flights over Gaza with the Israeli military.
The Labour administration said information would only be shared if it was deemed relevant to securing the release of hostages held by Hamas within the Gaza Strip.
The RAF describe Shadow R1 planes as being capable of “comprehensive intelligence gathering” that is “particularly valuable to ground commanders”.
